UK faces obesity epidemic within a generation

More than 40 per cent of men and women in the UK could be obese within a
generation, a conference has been told.

Professor Philip James, president of the International Obesity Taskforce, gave
the warning as research by the Medical Research Council, Association for the
Study of Obesity, Human Nutrition Research and the London School of Hygiene and
Tropical Medicine all pointed to obesity becoming an "epidemic" in
children.

The council has called on the Government to set real targets for bringing
obesity levels down.

In a separate development, public health minister Melanie Johnson has warned
retailers, manufacturers and caterers that they could be forced to label foods
as ‘high in salt’ if they fail to make progress in reducing the amount of salt
in their products.

She added she expected to see commitments made by February next year to
reduce salt levels across a range of products, including ready meals.